The Darkest Hour

“My fault?” Firestar gasped in astonishment. The dark tabby’s eyes burned with hatred, and Firestar knew that in his own way Darkstripe was grieving for the dead leader. Now that Tigerstar was dead, Darkstripe was utterly alone. “No, Darkstripe. It was Tigerstar’s own fault. If he hadn’t brought BloodClan into the forest, none of this would have happened.”

“And how did it happen?” Graystripe broke in. “That’s what I’d like to know. What was Tigerstar thinking of? Didn’t he see what he was letting loose in the forest?”

“He thought it was for the best.” Leopardstar tried to d e f end Tigerstar, though her words sounded hollow. “He believed the forest cats would be safer if they all joined together under his leadership, and he thought BloodClan would convince you he was right.”

A snort of contempt came from Graystripe, but Leopardstar ignored it. Instead, she flicked her tail and another cat came up—a skinny gray tom with a ragged ear. Firestar recognized him as Boulder, one of the rogue cats Tigerstar had taken into ShadowClan.

“Boulder, tell Firestar what happened,” Leopardstar ordered.

The ShadowClan warrior looked thin and tired as he met Firestar’s gaze. “I belonged to BloodClan once,” he confessed. “I left many moons ago, but Tigerstar knew about my past. He asked me to take him into Twolegplace because he needed more cats to make sure ShadowClan controlled the forest.” He glanced down at his paws, his ears twitching uncomfortably. “I…I tried to tell Tigerstar that Scourge was dangerous, but neither of us imagined what he could do. Tigerstar offered Scourge a share of the forest if he would bring his cats to help him fight. He thought that once he’d made all the other Clans join TigerClan he could get rid of BloodClan.”

“But he was wrong,” Firestar murmured, feeling again that strange grief he had felt when he saw his oldest enemy lying dead at his paws.

“We couldn’t believe it when he died.” Boulder’s eyes were stunned, as if he were sharing Firestar’s memory. “We thought nothing could ever defeat Tigerstar. When BloodClan attacked our camp after Tigerstar died, we were too shocked to fight, though not all of us left. Some cats thought it would be safer to join Scourge. Jaggedtooth, for one.” Boulder’s voice grew bitter. “It would be worth fighting BloodClan to get my claws into that traitor’s fur.”

“Then will you do it?” Firestar glanced around and realized that all the cats in the clearing had drawn closer and were silently listening. Only Blackfoot and Darkstripe stood aloof, at the edge of the crowd. “Stand with us and WindClan tomorrow?”

The cats remained silent, waiting for Leopardstar to speak.

“I don’t know,” she mewed. “Maybe the battle is already lost. I need time to think.”

“There’s not much time left,” Sandstorm pointed out.

Firestar gathered his own warriors together with a sweep of his tail and beckoned them over to the side of the clearing. “Think now, Leopardstar,” he meowed. “We’ll wait.”

The RiverClan leader flashed him a defiant glance, as if she were going to insist that she would take as much time as she needed, but she said nothing, only drawing two or three of the RiverClan warriors closer to her and speaking to them in a low, urgent voice. Anger burning in his eyes, Blackfoot thrust his way forward to join them. The rest of the cats stayed in their frozen, wretched silence, and Firestar couldn’t help wondering what kind of fighting force they would make.

“How mouse-brained can they be?” growled Cloudtail. “What’s to discuss? Leopardstar says they can’t leave safely—what else can they do but fight?”

“Be quiet, Cloudtail,” Firestar ordered.

“Firestar.” Bramblepaw’s voice interrupted him. Firestar turned to see his apprentice standing a tail-length away with Tawnypaw close beside him. “Tawnypaw wants to talk to you.”

The young she-cat returned Firestar’s gaze steadily, reminding him irresistibly of her formidable mother, Goldenflower.

“Well, Tawnypaw?” he prompted.

“Bramblepaw says I should tell you why I left ThunderClan,” Tawnypaw meowed without preamble. “But you already know, don’t you? I wanted to be judged for what I was, not for what my father did. I needed to feel I belonged.”

“No cat thought you didn’t belong,” Firestar protested.

Tawnypaw faced him with a glint in her eyes. “Firestar, I don’t believe that,” she meowed. “And neither do you.”

Firestar felt his fur flush hot with guilt. “I made a mistake,” he admitted. “I looked at both of you, and all I could see was your father. Other cats did, too. But I didn’t want you to leave.”

“Other cats did,” Tawnypaw meowed quietly.

“She could still come back into the Clan, couldn’t she?” Bramblepaw pleaded.

“Hang on a minute,” Tawnypaw interrupted sharply. “I’m not asking you if I can come back. All I want is to be a loyal cat in my new Clan.” Her eyes were shining. “I want to be the best warrior I can be,” she went on. “And I can’t be that in ThunderClan.”